Demeter's Daughter
by Angel Winter
Summary: Who really knows the story of Katie Gardener? Travis Stoll is one of the few who do.
1. Chapter 1: Mailmen and Horses

**This is my first REAL PJ&O fanfic, so please be nice. Read and review! Hope ya like it! :D**

* * *

Katie Gardener knew the normalcy in her life was coming to an abrupt halt when the mailman tried to kill her.

Now, you have to understand, weird things always happened to Katie. What with being ADHD and dyslexic, life had been hard. On top of all that, all through her elementary school years, Katie claimed that monsters were always trying to kill her. _That's _why her third grade classroom was on fire. _That's _why there's a gigantic hole in the gym floor. _That's _why her reading substitute (a.k.a the alleged "monster") was hanging from the basketball hoop.

Needless to say, no one believed her. Even _she _thought she was insane. But somewhere inside of her, she knew something was off about her life.

So, when the mailman's eyes glowed red and he pulled a dagger on her, Katie wasn't exactly "surprised" as much as she was "scared".

Katie did the normal thing a thirteen-year-old girl would do when her usual mailman turned psycho- she screamed and tried to shut the door. But her mailman must've started taking something, because he kicked the door back open, throwing it off its hinges like a toy door on a dollhouse. It slammed into her, throwing her hard against the stairs, knocking the breath right out of her. Gasping, she shoved the cracked door to the side just in time to see the mailman…monster…_thing _lunge at her, dagger raised. She screamed again and kicked out reflexively, catching the monster right in the chest. It staggered back, thrown off-balance. Katie quickly scrambled to her feet and ran up the stairs, ignoring how she still breathed a little funny.

She heard the monster growl behind her, an inhuman sound from deep in its throat. It was ticked. But she didn't hear it chase her. It confused her, but she didn't focus on it too much. She hit the upstairs floor running, threw open the first door she came to, and dove in, slamming and locking the door behind her. She pressed her back against it, barely noticing that she ended up in the bathroom. She held her breath for a moment, pressed her ear against the door, and listened.

Nothing.

Where did the monster go?

Suddenly her eyes locked on something dark outside the window. Her eyes narrowed and she walked closer. Was that…_smoke?_ Yes. Her eyes followed the wispy strands of smoke, locating someone standing on her porch. No, not some_one_.

The monster.

And he was busy lighting matches and throwing them into the bushes surrounding her house.

He was going to try and burn her alive.

Panic clawed at her. She trembled, tears welling her eyes, the urge to scream building in her throat as she watched the creature catch her eye in the window, grin wickedly at her, and run off, disappearing into the fading daylight. Good God, she was going to _die_.

As more smoke wafted past the window, she gripped the windowsill tighter. The front porch was completely on fire now, eliminating that as a possible escape route. There was no back door. The only phone was downstairs, which she guessed was already starting to be engulfed in the flames. She was trapped.

And then her fingers hit the latch on the window. For a second, she just stared at it. Then, with the gracelessness of a girl frantic with terror, she unhooked the latch and threw the window wide open. She didn't stop to think about how she was two stories off the ground, or how the bushes underneath were on fire. She just knew she had to jump, and jump far. So she did.

She hit the grass hard, barely missing the flaming bushes. Pain shot through her legs and she hit her knees with a cry. The intense heat of the fire behind her made her sweat, and the smoke burned her eyes. Almost blindly, she started crawling from her burning house, crawled until the smoke no longer choked her and she no longer felt the heat. She stopped in lawn across the street. She turned back on her knees, watching with teary eyes as her house was engulfed in flames, all her childhood memories turned to ash.

Then she collapsed into the grass, the world going black.

* * *

"Do you know who would've done this to you or you family, Katie?"

Katie sat still in the chair, staring down at her hands. She was at the police station after a few days in the hospital being treated for smoke inhalation. They suspected an arsonist (well, duh! Were these really the professionals?) but they didn't know who. They wanted Katie's help. Her dad hadn't wanted them to question her, but after saying it would help assure her safety, he'd relented and she'd been stuck in an interrogation room.

Like a criminal.

When _she _was the victim.

"Katie." She looked up at the interrogator's voice. The short, rotund man's blue eyes stared at her. "Did you see anyone suspicious around your house anytime lately?"

_Just my apparently-demonic mailman. _"No." Like she was really going to confirm to this man that she was a crazy person, like everyone else believed.

The police officer frowned at her response, clearly not believing her. "Honey," he said in a soothing tone, "if you tell us, we can protect you. And your father. They won't hurt you again…"

She didn't believe a word of that. "I didn't see anyone, sir." _Anyone you would believe, anyway._

* * *

When she left the interrogation room, her father was deep in conversation with a man in a wheelchair. Katie was confused, because she didn't recognize this man as anyone her father worked with, or any of his friends. He had curly brown hair and tan skin, as if he spent a lot of time in the sun. Even though he didn't look very old, something about him radiated ancient, a _I've seen and know a whole lot more than you do _feeling that Katie didn't like. But when he looked over at her, his eyes said _kindness_.

Her father walked up to her and put an arm around her shoulders. "How was it, Kates?" he asked, using his nickname for her.

Katie shrugged. "I didn't know much more than they did," she said, trying to keep herself from looking around for more monsters. Since the mailman thing, it had become a bit of a paranoid habit. One her father didn't miss. His arm tightened around her shoulders, a sort of protective gesture that made the fear ease up a little. But only a little.

"Katie," he said, suddenly turning to smile at the stranger. "I'd like you to meet an…old friend of mine."

Katie blinked, having forgotten the man was there. But she quickly recovered, putting on her innocent smile that helped her ease her way through most things. "Nice to meet you, mister…?"

The man smiled warmly and held out his hand for her to shake. "Chiron," he said as she shook his hand. "You can call me Chiron."

Katie frowned a little. _Chiron. A strange name…_

"Chiron here runs a summer camp not far from here," her dad said, and she looked up at him. "He says, since summer's coming up, and to sort of…help you after this incident, you can go there this year. If you want."

Katie's frown deepened. "It's…it's not like the last camp you sent me to, right?" she asked hesitantly. The last camp had been to help with the _creatures _she supposedly saw. It had torture, a summer spent with mental cases that nearly drove her to the point of insanity, a thing she'd hoped to avoid.

Her dad shook his head. "No, sweetie. It's just…um, a camp."

Katie looked over at Chiron. He was still smiling at her. He seemed nice, and not like someone who'd try and help her get over her "mental issues." And the possibility of a normal, creature-free summer did sound incredibly good right now…

Without really thinking, she nodded. "Sure. Sounds good."

* * *

When the first day of summer came, Katie dragged her packed suitcase outside of her and her father's rented apartment to find that her dad would not be driving her to camp. The camp people would.

A van sat outside in the apartment complex's parking lot, the words CAMP HALF-BLOOD written on the side. Chiron sat in his wheelchair beside the passenger door, waiting for her. He smiled as she approached.

"Hello, Katie," he greeted her. "You ready for camp?"

Katie smiled back. "Oh, yeah." The last few days of school had been torture, kids pestering her with details of the arsonist attack, labeling her as a bigger freak than she'd already been proclaimed by the popular girls. She wanted nothing more than a relaxing summer.

Chiron gestured to the passenger door. "You can ride up front with Argus. I'll get in the back."

Katie paused, unsure how to word her question without offending the man. "Um…no offense, but…do you need help getting in?"

Chiron waved his hand dismissively. "Oh, no. I'm fine."

"You sure?"

"Yes, Katie. Don't worry about me. I'm more than I seem."

Katie nodded, but she was still frowning. She opened up the passenger door and set her suitcase in the floor of the van. Then she climbed in, slamming the door shut and buckling herself in. She turned to look at the driver…and screamed.

_Eyes. _Hundreds of them, all over his body. He smiled kindly at her, but she pressed herself against the door, her heart racing in her chest. Her voice was high-pitched, panicked, when she yelled, _"C-Chiron!" _

The van's backdoors opened wide. She looked back, seeing the wheelchair thrown into the back. Then Chiron came in…or half of Chiron. Because were his legs should've been was all horse. As he settled in, he grimaced at her petrified look.

"Katie Gardener…there are some things that we need to explain to you."

* * *

**Did I do good? I hope so. :D**


	2. Chapter 2: The Camp and an Idiot

**Chapter Two! Hope ya like it! Read and Review, please! :D**

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Katie Gardener couldn't believe it. She was a demigod. Her mother was a goddess and hadn't left because she hated her (or, at least, she hoped she hadn't left because of that.) The monsters she saw were real and they all wanted to kill her. She could have died. The camp she was going to was to give her a safe place, somewhere to learn how to deal with her newfound demigodishness and to fight monsters.

Good God- or gods?- she was confused. And scared. And, for the first time, worrying for someone _else's _sanity instead of her own.

She was curled up in a little ball in the front seat, pretending to be asleep. The driver, Argus, still creeped her out. Chiron did, too. And while she felt so confused, she didn't think she should be staring at the many-eyed man, or the half-horse weirdo. She needed to think.

Katie thought, first, that Chiron was a completely insane man in a horse costume and that Argus was actually a normal mute, that she was losing it yet again and imagining all those unnecessary eyes. Second, she thought it all made a strange sort of sense- how else did she explain the demonic mailman? Third, she thought she was dreaming.

Which one was true, she couldn't figure out to save her life.

And, before she knew it, she was fast asleep.

* * *

"Katie. We're here."

Slowly Katie opened her eyes, yawning and stretching her arms. At first she expected to look up and see her father's face leaning over her. But instead, she saw hundreds of eyes.

She bit down hard on her tongue to keep from screaming and offending Argus (again) and quickly scrambled up in her seat, peeking over the top. Chiron still lay there, from the waist down all horse. She almost started banging her head against the headrest.

That killed her hopeful "this is all a dream" theory.

Chiron was looking at her with a mixture of concern and…_amusement_? He thought her reaction was _funny_? She almost snapped something at him when she remembered he was some ancient being with possible magical powers that she was unsure of. So she bit back the comment and instead said, "No monsters, right?"

He smiled kindly and shook his head. "No, Katie. No monsters. Just others like you…and a few harpies, but they won't eat you unless you're out past curfew."

Katie's eyes widened. Oh, God- gods!- this was going to be some sort of adventure.

Argus came around to her side of the door and opened it for her like a gentleman. She tried her best to smile and not grimace at him as she slid to the grass. As soon as her sandaled feet touched the dirt, she felt better. Rejuvenated. Less like a girl who'd just been through all sorts of emotional crap and more like herself. She smiled without really thinking. She'd always been that way around dirt and plants, though she never really understood why. Maybe it had something to do with her godly parent?

Before she could contemplate the notion further, Chiron came around the side of the van, his hoofed feet softly thudding against the grass. Katie looked at him with awe and wariness, how she'd been looking at him since he'd stepped into the van without his wheelchair. He smiled at her again and said, "Shall we, my dear?" He gestured towards the hill before her.

A sudden nervousness overcame her. She pressed her lips together and she nodded with what she hoped looked like confidence. Her dad had sent her here. It shouldn't be bad here, then.

Right?

With a sigh, she climbed the hill after Chiron, wondering just what she'd gotten into.

* * *

Camp was amazing.

There were so many kids, all in bright orange t-shirts that said CAMP HALF-BLOOD, and most of them looked friendly. There were cabins, all so intricately decorated, that she felt for a second that she'd actually stepped through a portal into Ancient Greece. She saw a beautiful lake, met a grumpy old man called Dionysus (was he _the _Dionysus? Probably), saw plenty of half-goat boys running around after girls who turned into trees, and saw a sword-fighting arena. But the best thing of all had to be the strawberry fields. She could've stayed there all day, feeling the dirt beneath her feet, the sun on her face, surrounded by green life, but Chiron insisted that they find her a place to sleep in the Hermes cabin, since it was already starting to get late. She had to stay there, so Chiron said, because they didn't know her godly parent yet, and so she was just going to sleep there until she was claimed.

Chiron left her at the door. Apparently he had a game of pinochle to attend or Mr. D would get angry. So he cantered off, leaving her face a less-extravagant looking cabin that was blaring the sounds of screaming, laughter, and annoying rap music.

Katie felt nervous again. After seeing all this amazing stuff today, she'd began to think she could belong here. Seeing as everyone seemed to be as crazy as she was. But she hadn't actually talked to any of the kids here yet, and she had begun to think that the worst possible ending of her first day wouldn't be that she'd find out that this was all real. No, it would be that everyone here thought she was as weird as the kids at her middle school did.

Katie popped her knuckles, a bad nervous habit she'd picked up after a few days at middle school. Finally, after a minute or two longer of staring at the cabin door, she worked up the courage to open the door. But as she reached for the doorknob, she heard, "No, no, no! _Cooonnnooorrr!" _And the door was flung open. Katie screamed as a kid came hurtling out and into her, throwing them in a tangled mess down onto the ground.

"Get off of me!" Katie shouted, kicking and punching, trying to knock the kid off of her.

The boy tried to sit up, but her necklace went with him, stuck in his curly brown hair. He frowned at her, still flailing at him, and at the necklace. "Hey, _your _necklace is stuck in _my _hair," he said, pointing to her and then to the necklace. "I'm sort of caught here."

Katie reached up and yanked hard on the chain, pulling it free along with a few hairs off the boy's head. He yelped in pain, then glared at her. "Hey!"

Without really thinking, Katie sat up and snapped, "Well _your _hair was caught in _my _necklace because _you _knocked _me _over!"

"I was pushed."

"Whatever!"

"Hey, Travis!" A boy who looked nearly identical to the one sitting beside her poked his head out of the cabin's open door, grinning. "That's one way to get a girl!"

The boy, Travis, flipped the kid off and yelled, "Oh, real funny, Connor! Just wait, I'll get you back!"

The other boy just laughed and ducked back into the cabin. With the door open, all the sounds Katie had heard from outside were amplified, and she frowned in disgust. _I have to stay here? _she thought.

Travis looked back at her and grinned. "So, who's the lucky lady staying with our lovely cabin tonight?"

She wrinkled her nose in disgust at him. "I'm Katie."

"Hmm." Travis tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Now, there's _lots _I can do with that…"

Katie didn't want to know what that meant. She quickly got to her feet and, with one last glare at Travis, headed for the cabin. As she walked, a blonde-haired boy with a strange scar stepped up to meet her. His smile was kinder looking than Travis's had been, putting her at ease instantly. He held out his hand to her and said, "Hello, there, newbie. I'm Luke. You are?"

Katie smiled at him and shook his hand. "I'm Katie. I'm supposed to stay here until I'm claimed…whatever that means."

Luke nodded and waved her inside, where everything was cramped a chaotic. Luke stayed close by her, keeping the crazed kids from pelting her with spitballs and other various items. "Move aside, new kid coming through!" he shouted, pushing kids aside and leading her to a corner in the very back of the cabin. He'd grabbed her luggage from outside and now placed it in the corner. "I'll find you a sleeping bag," he said. "Make yourself at home." And then he vanished into the chaos.

Katie watched him go, then sat down on top of her suitcase. She smiled a little. Maybe all these kids weren't complete idiots…

Then she saw Travis come back into the cabin. He instantly spotted her and flashed her a grin.

She scowled and looked to the floor.

Maybe Luke and a few others weren't idiots, but Travis...well, she was already sure Travis was going to be a pain in the butt.

God- _gods! _(She had to remember that)- she could already tell this was going to be one heck of a summer.


	3. Chapter 3: Ten Percent All Right

**Wahoo! Chapter Three! I really think I did good on this chapter. Review if you think so, too! Hope ya like it! :D**

* * *

The days at Camp Half-Blood began to blur together, one big mixture of confusion and happiness. Katie made friends, found lots of time to visit the strawberry fields, found out she was pretty good with a sword…after the first week, Camp Half-Blood was her new home and she couldn't imagine not spending her days yelling at Hermes kids for stealing her toothbrush, hacking the life out of dummies with a large sword, or gawking at all the magic and mythical creatures she saw. She felt…she belonged here.

But, of course, with every good there, there had to be one dark spot to even it all out.

And, for her, that dark spot was a certain brown-haired boy…

Katie quickly found out what Travis had meant when he said he could do a lot with her name. After that first day, he refused to call her by her name. Instead, he made up nicknames, like "Katie-Cat" or "Kit-Kat" or just plain "Weirdo". He followed her everywhere, teasing her, pulling pranks, making random animal noises, or flicking her in the back of the head if she tried to ignore him. In the end, she was usually yelling at him to leave her alone. And he would just smirk and walk away, only to come back ten minutes later with Silly String. And it was around that time she realized that she had somehow gained the full attention of Travis Stoll. About ninety percent of the time he spent with her, all Katie wanted to do was punch him in the face. But she restrained herself by reasoning that she would probably want to stay on the god of thieves' good side, and that wouldn't happen if she punched one of his kids lights out. So she put up with him as best she could.

But, on her second Monday at Camp Half-Blood, Katie saw the other ten percent of him that she hadn't really seen before. Afterwards, she thought that putting up with him wouldn't be so bad.

* * *

Katie woke up from a nightmare, one she had frequently, one of finding that demonic arsonist finding her new safe place and burning the camp to the ground, with her and all the other campers still inside. She woke up to find she'd kicked her sleeping bag off of her. She quickly pulled it back to her, because she knew if she left it there someone would have stolen it by morning. As she slid her legs back into its warmth, she leaned back against the wall, staring out at all the other sleeping campers. She was wide awake now, and there was no chance of her being able to coax the drowsiness back. So, looking out in the shadows caused by four a.m. darkness, she listened to the deep breathing of the many other sleeping bodies surrounding her.

She looked out at all the other unclaimed kids in sleeping bags or available bunk beds. Suddenly she noticed that some of them were pretty old, maybe sixteen or seventeen years old. Had probably been here a while.

Unclaimed.

It was then she recognized the one fact she hadn't let herself think about. The probability that she would ever be claimed was very, very slim. Her mother may still not want her, may still not care about her.

Tears welled in her eyes at the sudden realization. She could very well end up like half of these kids- unclaimed and unwanted. She closed her eyes tight, trying to keep the tears from spilling from her eyelids, but to no avail. They trickled down her cheeks, dripping from her chin and onto the sleeping bag. She opened her eyes and looked with blurry vision at the other kids again. She could very well be one of them, always wondering who their other parent was.

A strangled sound escaped her throat, and she quickly pressed her fist against her lips to prevent any other sobs from becoming audible. She didn't want to be unwanted. She'd been that for too long at all her schools, never accepted, always looked down on, always laughed at because she was different.

A dark thought entered her mind. _What if my mother wanted me to die in that fire?_

Another sob made its way through her lips, loud even through her fingers. Quickly she looked around the cabin with teary eyes, hoping, praying, that no one had heard her and woken up. She didn't want anyone to see her like this.

Then she caught sight of one of the kids close to the door sitting up and looking around for the noise. Katie closed her eyes, feigning sleep and hoping she didn't shake as much as she thought. _Please don't let them notice me, _she thought.

She heard the sound of a mattress squeaking and the soft thumping sound of socked feet hitting wooden floors. The footsteps came closer and closer and, soon, she heard a voice whisper, "Katie-Cat?"

Oh, gods. Of all the people to wake up and find her like this, it had to be _him_.

Katie kept her eyes closed and hoped he would just go away. But she heard the footsteps come a little closer and he whispered again, "Katie-Cat? You okay?"

Keeping her eyes closed, Katie mumbled in a shaky, quiet voice, "Go away, Travis."

But he didn't move. Instead she heard him come even closer until she could feel him directly in front of her. "Are you okay?" he repeated, and she heard him crouch down in front of her.

Katie almost snapped at him to go away again, but she didn't. Instead she mutely shook her head and put her hands back over her eyes as more tears threatened to escape her closed eyelids. She heard him sigh and expected him to go away, not wanting to deal with an emotional girl. But he surprised her. She felt him sit down beside her, his back against the wall like hers, his shoulder just brushing hers. Part of her wanted to shove him away and tell him to leave her the heck alone, yell, "Can't you see I want to be alone?" But another part of her whispered that she didn't want to be alone. She wanted to be comforted. So she sat still and let her tears fall, Travis sitting quietly beside her.

When Katie finally stopped trembling, Travis ventured to ask her another question. "What's wrong?"

Katie didn't answer instantly. Then she whispered in a less shaky voice, "H-How…how long was it before you were claimed?" She peeked at him through her fingers, wanting to see how he reacted.

Travis sat there for a second. "I was claimed my second summer," he said finally. "Claiming? Is this what this is about?"

Katie closed her fingers again as he tried to see her eyes through them. Staring at her palms, she admitted, "I'm scared I'll never be claimed."

They were both quiet for a long time. Then, suddenly, Travis said, "Don't worry about being claimed, Katie. Some people may not get claimed, but I have a good feeling that you aren't one of them. Trust me." And with that he stood up and made his way back to his bunk, never looking back at her.

Katie lowered her hands as she watched him walk away. She realized that that was the first time he'd ever used her real name. And even though her face was tear-stained and she had a horrible headache from crying, she felt a small smile form on her lips.

Maybe Travis wasn't so bad.

And, within a few minutes, Katie was fast asleep again.


	4. Chapter 4: A Puzzle

**Today's my birthday...I was bored...I had a computer...all this equals a new chapter. Hope ya like it!**

* * *

Travis was right.

Maybe lots of kids wouldn't get claimed…but Katie Gardener was not one of them.

Her third week at Camp Half-Blood, she was claimed as a child of Demeter. As she stood in the center of the camp, staring up at the strange symbol flickering above her head and somehow understanding what it meant without all the other campers shouting it out, her first thought was, _Well, that explains why I like the strawberry fields so much._

Then, in a flurry of excited activity, she was pushed from the Hermes cabin (quite literally, she might add) and into the Demeter. And, she had to admit, she liked it a lot better here. But she also had to admit she might miss the craziness of the Hermes cabin a little.

But only a little.

She made even more friends there with her half-siblings as they conversed daily about their love for the outdoors and gardening, and got to spend just about every day in the strawberry fields, learning how to help the fruits grow with her own magic, something that thrilled her to no end. She still got to practice sword fighting and, sometimes, if the Apollo kids were nice enough or thought she was pretty, she got to try her hand at archery. She almost shot a few kids in the back, so she was quickly deprived of her bow and arrow, but she also hit the target close to the center. She was excited. She at least knew she wouldn't be a hopeless case in the world of demigods. She could hold her own.

But as the days flew by, she noticed she saw less and less of Travis Stoll. He'd seemed to fade back as she took on her new role as a child of Demeter, not pestering her quite as much, using her real name instead of the nicknames. Even though she acted like that made her day all the better, it actually made her a little sad. He'd grown on her a little bit after that one night and, even though she still wanted to punch him most of the time, he did occasionally make her laugh. So he was….okay.

Katie saw him around camp a lot (mostly running in terror from Ares kids with his brother, Connor) but by the time she reached her fourth week at Camp Half-Blood, he didn't even look at her anymore. It bothered her.

So when she saw him waiting outside the Demeter cabin door with a few cans of Silly String, she was the most surprised out of all the Demeter kids, because he and his brother usually didn't target them for whatever reason. Probably because their mother could make his early morning cereal a nightmare. Who knew why when it came to the Stolls?

Katie frowned through one of the windows of the cabin, peering down at Travis- by himself- shaking the cans of Silly String and grinning like a loon. After a minute or two and realizing nothing was changing, Katie stepped away from the window and over to the door.

As she reached for the doorknob, one of the younger Demeter kids started shaking her head really fast. "Don't!" she hissed, her eyes wide. "He'll spray you with that stuff!"

That made Katie hesitate. Even though they had shared that really sweet moment, she didn't put it past him to shoot the sticky foam at her. Though he probably didn't even remember her name by now. The thought made her ticked off, so she just shrugged and said, "He doesn't scare me." And she opened the door.

"Travis, what do you think you're doing?" was the first thing out of her mouth when she saw that he had resorted to jumping up and down to shake the can instead of just pumping his fist up and down like a normal person.

Travis froze at her voice. He looked up at her slowly. Then he hissed, _"Crap!"_

The anger flashed up again inside of her. He hadn't spoken to her in a week and "crap" was the first thing he said when he saw her? Way to make her feel special. "What are you doing?" she repeated in a more ticked-off tone, putting her hands on her hips.

"Uh…playing with Silly String," he said, gesturing to the can and raising his eyebrows in a way that said _duh!_

Katie narrowed her eyes. "Okay. Sure."

"Really! I'm just playing!"

"Let me tell you why I'm suspicious- one, you are _never _'just playing'. Two, you usually never come near the Demeter cabin for reasons unknown…"

"If you must know, the smell of your flowers give me a headache."

Her eye twitched. Was_ that _why he'd stopped teasing her? Because her cabin's flowers gave him _headaches_? Her eyes narrowed even further, almost into cat-like slits. She clenched a fist. "Gods, Travis Stoll….I swear I will _kill you_!"

Travis frowned. "Why ever would you do that?"

"You are so annoying-!"

"You mean hot."

"You are arrogant-!"

"Ah." Travis grinned, crossing his arms across his chest. "I get it now."

Katie paused. "Got what?"

"You like me."

_"What?"_

"You think I'm hot, don't you?"

Katie stared at him for a second, openmouthed. How did she ever miss this annoying, cocky, infuriating boy? "Gods, one of these days, you'll regret ever coming near me, Travis Stoll. I will _hurt you_."

Travis's grin seemed to get a little wider. He just grinned at her angry expression for a minute. Then, suddenly, he said, "Nice to have you back, Katie-Cat."

Her anger fell to confusion. "What?"

Travis shrugged and smiled again. Then, without another word, he turned and sprinted off towards the Hermes cabin.

Katie watched him go, her brow creased with a confused frown. What did he mean, nice to have her back? Where had she gone? Then she realized he called her "Katie-Cat". And although part of her groaned, "Here we go," another part started to smile.

Travis Stoll was one mystery she didn't get.

But, darn it, she couldn't stand unfinished puzzles.

So she'd just have to find the pieces. Which meant letting him stalk her again.

Good or bad thing? She wasn't sure yet. But she _was _sure she'd find out soon enough.

* * *

**Sooo...? Watcha think? Review please!**


	5. Chapter 5: Unexpected Swim

**Da-da-da-daaaah! Next chapter. Hope ya like it! :D**

* * *

"_Travis Stoll!"_

Said Stoll froze at the sound of Katie Gardener's voice, wincing at the anger. Gods, she was going to kill him. Again.

Feigning at least _some _innocence, he turned to face the ticked-off brunette stomping down the lake's shore. "Hey, Kit-Kat!" he called, offering a grin. "What's wrong?"

"You!" she snapped as she got closer. Her green eyes were ablaze. For a second, it reminded Travis of how Percy, their newest camper, described the god of war's eyes. He felt like he should wither and die painfully under that glare, but he maintained his grin like her anger didn't intimidate him.

"Aw, what did I do while you weren't looking now?" he asked.

"You know!" she shouted, looking like she wanted to punch him. "Where are my gardening tools now, Stoll? Where are they? You better tell me!"

While she yelled, Travis watched her with amusement. She got all red in the face when she was mad and she always waved her hands like she was signaling a rescue plan or something. It was entertaining. Almost as entertaining as her expression when, in her second year, she was announced the head of the Demeter cabin. It was now the middle of said year, and Travis noted with disdain that she had gotten close to his height. Now he couldn't tower over her. But it wasn't like that made her back down anyway.

"Travis! Are you even listening to me?"

Travis blinked and said, "Um, what?"

Katie clenched her fists and breathed out slowly, like she was _really _holding out the urge to snap his neck now. "I said, take me to my frickin' tools, Stoll!"

"Ah, those weird shovel thingies?"

Katie breathed out again. Instead of correcting him, she held up a fist and said, "Just take me to them."

"All right." He held up his hands in surrender. "Don't shoot."

She lowered her fist. "Where are they?"

Travis fought back a smirk as he turned towards the lake, scanning the blue water. "There."

Katie looked at the water, her mouth falling open in horror. "You didn't…?"

"I didn't toss them in the water," he said quickly. If he'd done that, he'd die slowly and painfully. Travis was a prankster, not an idiot. "They're _on _the water."

Then Katie's eyes widened. He followed her gaze and held back another triumphant smirk when he saw what she was looking at- the little white buoy floating in the water with a green box sitting on it.

So fast he barely saw her hand, she grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him towards her, her eyes fiery again. Travis nearly flinched at how close their faces were to each other. Ignoring his discomfort, she said in a low voice, "Take me to them. Now."

"Okay, okay!" he said, and she released his shirt. Travis quickly stepped away from her, brushing the wrinkles out of his t-shirt. "Just don't blow a fuse, all right?"

"Hmph."

* * *

Katie reached out over the side of the canoe, her fingers just brushing the cold metal of her toolbox before she had to step back, otherwise she'd fall into the water. She frowned and turned to where Travis sat on one of the benches holding the paddles. "We need to get closer. I can't reach."

"Afraid to get wet?"

She crossed her arms. "If anyone will jump in that water to get my tools, it'll be you."

Travis frowned. "Why me?" he demanded.

"You put them there."

Travis rolled his eyes but started paddling again, moving the canoe closer to the buoy. Katie reached out again, this time managing to close her hand around the handle. She grinned proudly. "Got them!" she cheered.

"Wahoo," Travis said with less enthusiasm. "Now we can go back."

"Sure, and then I can beat you up for-" Katie stood up too fast. In one quick motion, the canoe flipped, dumping them both into the water.

Still clinging to her toolbox, which was not designed for floating, Katie forced her way back to the surface of the water, gasping for air. Moments later, Travis surfaced just a little ways in front of her. "Katie!" he shouted.

"This is your fault!" she yelled.

"How in Hades is it my fault?" he demanded in a gasping voice, pumping his arms to keep his head above the water.

"If you hadn't put my tools out here, we wouldn't be in this situation!"

"You're the one who tipped the canoe!"

"You started all this!"

Travis stuck his tongue out childishly at her. She stuck hers out, too, in response. Then they floated for a bit, each looking towards the lake's shore. It was far away, a long way for them to swim. But the canoe wouldn't really be of any use to them, looking as how Travis didn't have the paddles with him.

Suddenly a spray of water hit Katie in the face. Spitting out the water she glared at Travis, who was grinning. _"Travis!"_

"Last one to shore is a harpy meal!" And he went under the water's surface, vanishing from sight.

"That was a lame pun," she said at the water, like he could hear her. She looked back to the shore. A few feet away, Travis's head popped back up.

"Slowpoke!" he yelled.

Katie frowned. "Immature loser!" she shouted back, but he'd already ducked back underwater.

Well, she couldn't lose this now.

So, fighting back the strange urge to grin excitedly, she gripped her toolbox handle tighter and swam after the son of Hermes.

She was nowhere closer to understanding him.

But, for some strange reason as she dove after him, unable to hold back laughter at his face when she pulled ahead of him, she felt she could wait a little longer.


	6. Chapter 6: You Won't Be Alone Anymore

**Yay! New chapter! I worked really hard on this one. Does Travis's story sound believable? I hope so.**

* * *

Camp Half-Blood had been thrown into a complete panic.

Why?

A camper was missing.

Or, to be more exact, a certain _Stoll _was missing.

And Connor was the only one freaking out more than Katie Gardener, even though she hid her worry well. On the outside, as she grabbed flashlights from the Big House along with the other cabin leaders, she was just another camper concerned for another. On the inside, though, she was a girl frantic to find her…friend.

Because that's all Travis was.

A friend.

It was the middle of her third year at Camp Half-Blood, and their new savior, Percy Jackson, and a couple of other campers had disappeared out of nowhere to go find his satyr, Grover, leaving the camp in a state of distress with a new lunatic for an activities director. But the only reason she dared to call the freak a lunatic, even in her mind, was what he'd said when Connor had come running, saying his brother was missing.

That it was all right, because there was one less brat to worry about.

Katie didn't even think Dionysus could be that cold.

The remaining cabin leaders had pestered him nonstop until he finally agreed to let them search the woods for the Stoll, but by then it had been dark. _Better for the monsters to find you, my dear, _sneered the sick little voice in the back of her mind as she walked towards the dark, looming trees, flashlight gripped tightly in one hand.

_Shut up, conscience, _she snapped mentally, and turned the flashlight on before stepping into the trees. She knew Beckendorf, Clarisse, Connor, and a few others were behind her, but she still felt oddly alone in the dark woods, like easy prey. It chilled her to the bone and, only a few steps in, she wanted to turn back around and run to her cabin.

But then she remembered Travis was out there somewhere (possibly) in those dark, spooky trees, all alone.

And without further thought of turning back, Katie quickened her pace.

"Should we yell for him?" whispered Silena from somewhere behind her.

"What if we call the monsters right to us?" whimpered a Dionysus kid.

"It'll take forever to find him if we don't call him," reasoned the Athena stand-in (Malcolm, was it?). "And we don't wanna be stuck out here all night."

"Gods, my brother's an idiot," muttered Connor, but he kept his eyes trained on the trees for any sign of said idiotic brother.

Katie moved her light in a wide arc around them, looking for any movement, footprints, an actual person, but saw nothing. So she took a deep breath and yelled, "Travis!"

Half of the kids behind her flinched at her loud, resounding voice, but she ignored them and shouted out again, "Travis Stoll! Where are you?"

After a minute or two, the others started shouting with her. "Travis! Where'd you go? You idiot, show yourself!" (The last line coming from Clarisse, of course).

"Are you sure he's even in the woods?" asked Beckendof after about ten minutes with no sign of the Hermes kid.

"Where else would he be?" countered Malcolm. "I know he's not dumb enough to walk out of camp with Thalia's tree being all screwy."

Katie nearly snorted, wondering if he'd actually met Travis. But she kept silent, walking on, beaming her flashlight in circles to look for him. She was so going to kill him when they found him.

For being an idiot and coming out here in the first place.

For scaring his brother like that.

For scaring her.

And they _would _find him. No monster would touch him. Because, if she knew him (and she did), if any monster got close he'd probably attempt to spray paint it pink and they would all start avoiding him. She could almost see it- them walking through these woods and finding Travis spray painting some poor creature pink…

"Katie! Are you listening?"

Katie blinked and turned to look at Malcolm, who was giving her an annoyed look. "Sorry. What were you saying?"

"I was saying we should probably split up. We can cover more ground that way, find him quicker, and be back at camp before morning."

The Dionysus kid looked a little pale at this suggestion, but Katie nodded, as if her opinion mattered and she was in charge of this little search party. "Sounds good." Then she pointed to a section of the woods off to her left. "I'll go this way, okay?"

Malcolm just nodded and started handing out directions to the others as Katie turned her back on the little group and started her trek through her section of the woods. Soon the Athena kid's voice faded into the sounds of the forest nightlife and Katie could think and look in peace, though her heart still pounded nervously in her chest at the thought that Travis might really be being attacked by some monster…

She quickly banished the thought before opening her mouth and bellowing, "Travis! Travis, where are you?" She had a vague feeling of déjà vu, remembering all the times she screamed his name in some fit of rage over another prank he'd pulled. Gods, she take him being annoying over gone any day. It left some strange feeling of emptiness in her chest, though she didn't know why since all he did was annoy the crap out of her. But she knew she wanted him back.

"Travis!" she yelled again.

Suddenly a twig snapped behind her. Katie's heart raced with the fear it'd be a monster behind her as she whirled to face whatever was there. She held up her flashlight like a hammer of sorts, ready to knock the snot out of anything that came at her…until she saw the shaggy brown hair.

Katie lowered the flashlight. "Travis?"

He had his arms thrown up over his face, like he'd thought she'd hit him (which she probably would have if she hadn't been so startled at actually finding him). His hair was messy with leaves and small twigs hanging from it, and he was dirty, like he'd been rolling in the grass. As she pointed the light at him, she noticed something else- tracks down the dust on his face.

Travis Stoll had been out here crying.

"Travis?" Katie's voice had softened from loud shock to a quiet, concerned whisper.

Travis lowered his arms, and she noticed him trying to discreetly rub the wetness from his red eyes as he moved his arms down to his sides. "W-What are you doing out here?" he said, stammering in a hoarse voice.

"Looking for you," she replied. "Connor's worried sick!"

"I'm fine."

"Well, I know that now."

They stood there, just staring at each other for a while. Katie remembered her second week at camp, when Travis had comforted her when she had cried. Maybe this was some divine force saying it was time to return the favor.

"What's wrong?"

The question hung in the air, and, for a minute, Katie was sure she had entered uncharted territory, a place in Travis Stoll that no one, save his brother, had ever ventured before. He just stared at her, red eyes narrowed, fingers twitching like he either wanted to punch her for asking or pop his knuckles, a nervous habit he'd picked up from hours of stalking her. She stared right back, but her gaze held no indecisiveness. She wanted to help, to be a shoulder to cry on, because he'd been that to her when he'd barely known her. She didn't like it when he was sad, even if she wanted to slap him silly most of the time. The world was much better when he smiled, in her opinion, but she'd never assess why she felt that way.

So she waited as he waged an inner war with himself, unsure of whether to let her in or keep her firmly locked out.

Suddenly Travis's shoulders sagged and he suddenly looked like a small child and nowhere near his real fifteen years. He closed his eyes, leaned back against one of the surrounding trees, and slid down it till he was sitting in the grass, his knees pulled up against his chest and making him look even younger. "My mom," he moaned so softly Katie barely heard him.

She sat down beside him, crossing her legs under her. "What about your mom?"

"She wants us to come home during the school year."

"But wouldn't it be nice to visit your mom?"

Travis sighed, opening his eyes to glance over at her. "Connor and I are year-rounders for a reason, Katie."

Katie paused, unsure how far she should push into this topic. Then she decided to risk it. "Why _are _you year-rounders?" she asked softly.

Travis tensed at the question. He went quiet and, for a second, Katie thought he wouldn't answer. So she tried a different way to coax an answer from him.

"I swear on the River Styx that if you answer I will never tell another soul."

Silence.

Then Travis whispered, "She didn't love us. She would…leave for parties and dates and leave Connor and I home by ourselves as babies. It's a miracle we didn't break something or get ourselves killed." He laughed bitterly. "Because you know how us Stolls are, eh?"

Katie didn't say anything.

Travis continued, "She thought we were burdens, told us we were little devils, that she wished we hadn't been born at all. She would _tell us that_. Connor would cry for hours afterwards. She'd just tell him to shut up, that she was trying to talk on the phone. Eventually child services came and got us when we were about ten, but we'd already been attacked by so many monsters and created such a big reputation as being troublemakers that no one would take us into foster care, let alone adopt us. So we were stuck in an orphanage until a satyr found us and took us…here. We never went back."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a crumpled StickyNote. "Then today this letter comes saying she wants us to come home and that she's become a better mother, that she really loves us." He made a face. "But she sends this news on a freaking StickyNote." He balled the yellow paper in his fist and hurled it as far away as he could. "I will not go back there," he declared with certainty.

But Katie noticed how his voice shook.

Travis really wanted his mother to just love him, whether he'd admit it or not.

So when she saw his shoulders begin to tremble again, Katie just reached over and took his hand. It was a bold move, but he gripped her hand back tightly, like it was the only thing keeping him on this earth. Silently, tears streaked down his cheeks, and Katie silently held his hand, knowing very well how much a human presence provided comfort.

Because he'd provided the same for her.

After a few minutes, Travis wordlessly got to his feet, still clutching Katie's hand, and helped her to her feet. They silently headed back towards camp, Travis wiping his eyes the whole way so he wouldn't look like he'd been crying. He never released her hand until they just stepped out of the trees, meeting the group of gathered cabin leaders in the designated area. Connor instantly began telling Travis what an idiot he was, but anyone with eyes could see the evident relief on his face. Everyone grumbled irritably at him for worrying them, but patted him on the back as he walked past.

When the search party's number dwindled down to three, it was just Connor, Travis, and Katie standing in the grass outside the woods. Connor started heading back, occasionally glancing over his shoulder for his brother. Katie realized that they were all each other really had. So, without really thinking, Katie stood up on her tiptoes and said in Travis's ear, "Don't worry, Travis. You and Connor won't be alone anymore."

Before he could say anything, Katie walked away.

As she tucked herself into her bunk's blankets later, the last thing she remembered thinking before she fell asleep was, _I found one of the pieces to the puzzle of Travis Stoll._


	7. Chapter 7: Strange Feeling

**Hope ya like it! :D**

* * *

Katie could feel the anger pulsing up inside of her. Or was it anger? She was never quite sure, but she had this feeling a lot lately. And, for some strange reason, it was only when she looked at Travis Stoll…and Becky, his new Aphrodite girlfriend.

Right now, sitting at the campfire, watching the pretty raven-haired girl bat her eyelashes at Travis and wrap her hand around his, she felt that strange feeling bubbling inside of her, threatening to burst. So, without a word to her friends, she stood up and strode towards her cabin, ignoring their shouts of "Hey!" and "Katie, what's wrong?" She hurried inside, finding it completely empty, which was good. Because, for whatever reason, she felt like she could cry.

She plopped down heavily onto her bunk, her eyes burning, wondering what the heck was wrong with her. Gods, why did she feel like this when she saw Travis and Becky? It happened every time since they got together last week. Every time she saw them together she had to walk away because, if she didn't, she thought she might break something (probably Becky). But for the life of her, she didn't know why.

Because she couldn't _like _Travis Stoll. He was her tormentor, the guy she felt was what an annoying brother would be like. But he hadn't picked on her lately. He'd been spending all his free time Becky, when it used to be with _her_…

Katie groaned aloud and let herself fall backwards onto her bunk's mattress. That burning feeling was still there. In her stomach and in her eyes.

She was broken. She was malfunctioning. She had a loose screw in her head.

She was losing it, to be frank.

And gods, did she hate it.

But the only thing she could think to help her situation was to make Becky somehow disappear, but that would make Travis upset, and that thought made her feel worse than when she thought of him with that Aphrodite girl. Still, she had no idea why. And she had pondered this for hours.

_Why did she feel this way?_

The only conclusion that seemed logical was that she liked Travis. But that was also completely _illogical_.

Katie had been faced with a puzzle she could not complete.

With a sigh, she reached over, snatched up her pillow, and pressed it over her face. Maybe she could suffocate herself and end all of this…oh gods, no, she was not going suicidal over _Travis Stoll_. She sighed again into her pillow.

A knock at the cabin door startled her, and she removed the pillow from her face, propping herself up on her elbows to glare at the door. It was probably one of her Demeter siblings, wanting to know if she was all right…

"Kates?"

Oh my gods.

"Travis?" she said in disbelief.

"Are you all right?" he asked through the door.

Katie grimaced. No, she was not all right. And the source of her troubles was right there, just outside the door. But she wasn't about to tell him that. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"You sure? You ran off in a hurry…"

Katie was a little shocked. He had actually noticed her through Becky's flirting? Any of the other guys she knew would've been blind to the world if an Aphrodite girl had been holding their hand. "I'm sure, Travis," she said when she felt she'd found her voice.

There was silence, and she thought he'd left. Then he said, "What would you say if I said I don't believe you?"

She almost laughed. "I'd say 'Go away.'"

"I thought so." Suddenly the locked popped and the door swung up, revealing Travis standing there with a white piece of plastic in his hand. He grinned at her. "It's a good thing I know how to pick locks, then."

Katie wanted to grimace and grin at the same time. She stuck to grimacing, though. "Travis, seriously, I'm fine," she said, but then she saw Becky standing outside the door behind Travis. The word 'fine' trembled on her lips and that weird feeling started up again.

Travis raised his eyebrows. "Katie, I've known you for too long," he said. "You can't pull that crap on me."

She grimaced again. "Well, it works on everyone else," she mumbled.

"So something is wrong!"

She glared at him. "I didn't say that."

"Didn't have to." And he closed the door, stepping inside. She heard Becky say something from outside, but he ignored her, and that made her smile a little.

Travis walked up to the foot of the bed, not sitting down because he knew she'd kick him off because she'd done that every time he sat on her bed. "So what's wrong?" he asked.

Katie looked at him for a minute, subconsciously biting her lip. Finally she just shook her head and said, "It's stupid. But…I'd like it if someone sat with me here for a while." And she sat up completely, crossing her legs underneath her and looking up at him hopefully.

Travis gave her a strange look and warily sat down on the edge of the bed. "Okay…"

She smiled at him. "Thanks."

He shrugged. "I'm a nice guy."

Katie rolled her eyes. Then she noticed the white plastic still in his hand and her eyes narrowed. "Is that…a library card?"

Travis looked down at it. "Uh, yeah," he said. "Why?"

"_You _have a _library card_?"

Travis gave her another strange look. "Of course not! But Annabeth does. Don't tell her I took it, okay?" He looked a little scared for a second, because Annabeth would kill him for her library card.

Katie stared at him. Then she began to chuckle softly until it turned into laughter that caused her to hold her sides. Travis frowned at her until her laughter became infectious and he started to laugh, too.

Katie didn't understand that burning feeling she got whenever Becky was with Travis. Katie didn't understand much about Travis, actually. But he stole Annabeth's library card just to make sure she was all right. That made him a great friend in her book. It made that strange feeling sizzle out into nothing.

So they sat there, talking and laughing, Becky locked outside, until the other Demeter kids came back from the campfire. And Katie could swear she hadn't felt that good in a while.

But, somehow, Travis Stoll could just make her smile.

* * *

**Just so ya know, she was feeling JEALOUS. :D**


	8. Chapter 8: A Flower

**Hope ya like it! :D**

* * *

Katie was crying.

Crying because of _him_.

His stupid pranks had gone too far. Never in all her years had she ever met someone as completely _stupid _and _inconsiderate _as Travis Stoll. Someone who'd purposely spray paint all her magnolia's brown so she'd walked outside that morning and thought her precious garden had died.

She'd nearly had a heart attack.

And he had _laughed_.

Even though the paint had washed off with the hose, she still felt the horror of seeing that she'd let all her wonderful plants die, even if it had been fake.

_No one _messed with her garden and still kept her as a friend.

So she sat on her bed, hugging her pillow and ignoring the comforting of her siblings because they didn't understand, no matter how much they wanted to help her. They weren't constantly tormented by the one person you both needed and hated at the same time, even if she didn't know why she needed him.

Besides, no matter what they said now, she still felt the tears falling down her face. She couldn't believe him. Even over her siblings, he knew her best. Knew how much her garden meant to her. How on earth could he have thought that would be funny?

"He's a loser, Katie," said one of her sisters. "Don't be bothered by him."

"We can always sic Clarisse on him later," suggested a brother.

"Ooh! Good idea!"

Katie just sniffled.

Gods, she hated Travis Stoll sometimes.

Someone knocked at the door. One of her sisters turned and shouted, "Go away! We don't want visitors right now!"

Another knock.

"Gods," the sister sighed. "Some demigods are so dumb." She stood up from Katie's bunk and walked over to the door. "Look," she snapped as she threw it open, "I said we don't want—" Her voice stopped abruptly.

And Katie just _knew_.

She looked up with blurry vision as her sister attempted to kick Travis and slam the door at the same time, but he dodged the blow and put his foot in the door with much more grace than her, a surprise since he was looking over her head and directly at Katie.

"Katie-Cat!" he called, his voice notably less cheerful than earlier. "Come on, give me a chance to make it up to you!"

"She doesn't want to talk to _you_," snarled one of her brothers.

"Go away!" shouted another.

Katie just stared, sniffling in an annoyingly pathetic way.

Travis's eyes were pleading with her just as much as his voice. "Come on, Kates!"

"Why should I?" she said softly, just loud enough for him to hear.

"'Cause I'm really sorry."

She stared at him a moment longer, ignoring one of her sisters as the little girl whispered, "Don't give in!"

Katie nodded finally. "Five minutes," she said, and the rest of the cabin groaned, but Travis smiled wide.

"Thanks," he said as she climbed to her feet, dropping her pillow back on her bed. He ignored her siblings' death glares as he led Katie out the door and behind the Demeter cabin, where it was more private.

"Five minutes," she reminded him, wiping at her still-damp eyes.

"That's all I need," he replied. Then he took a deep breath…and leaned towards her.

Katie knew her face instantly flushed bright red. "W-What are you doing?" she exclaimed as he came steadily closer.

He didn't answer. He held out his hand like he was going to caress her cheek, and Katie felt her eyes fluttering shut…and then he abruptly drew back. Her eyes snapped open and she realized he was holding out to her the most a flower that he had supposedly "pulled out of her ear". It was the most beautiful flower she had ever seen. It glittered as if made of jewels, flashing many different colors, some that she didn't even know.

Katie knew her face was still red, but her eyes were glued to the flower. "Oh my gods…its beautiful," she whispered, entranced by it.

"I…I had the Hecate cabin enchant one of the forest's wildflowers for you," Travis said, and she looked up to notice his face was a bit red, too. "I-I hope you like it. I'm really sorry about earlier…"

Katie felt the hate she had just had moments before just evaporate as a smile lit up her face. "Thank you, Travis," she said, meaning it, and carefully took the flower from his hand, not wanting to hurt the beauty.

He smiled, too, in what was obviously relief. "Good," he said, breathing out. "'Cause I hate it when you're mad at me."

Without another word, he turned and ran off.

Katie stared after him for a moment, her smile ever-widening as she watched him hurrying away. He had been so sincere, and so nervous…she realized she could never really hate Travis Stoll.

No one messed with her garden and could keep her as a friend...except for him.

The smile still there, she nearly skipped to her garden, eager to find a place in it for her new and favorite flower.


	9. Chapter 9: A Question

**I'm debating whether to write the fireworks scene or not...should I?**

* * *

"Katie-Cat!"

Katie sighed, wiped her brow with her gloves, and turned to face the brown-haired boy maneuvering through the strawberry plants towards her. "Yeah, Travis?" she asked, her voice slightly frustrated. He was the only one that dared to bother her while she was gardening, and he usually paid for it. But he always grinned as he came to his impending doom, something she'd probably never understand.

He was grinning now as he neared her, a water bottle in each of his hands. He tossed one to her when he was close enough and unscrewed the lid on his own. "You should really bring something to drink while you're out here," he commented after he'd swallowed.

Katie rolled her eyes. "I'm fine," she insisted, but said anyway, "Thanks."

"No prob." He looked down at her sunburned face with raised eyebrows. "How long have you been out here already?"

Katie shrugged. "I don't know…about four hours?"

Travis choked on his water. _"Four hours?"_ He shook his head. "Gods, Kates, I'm surprised you haven't had a heat stroke yet."

She rolled her eyes before promptly turning away from him, shoving her trowel deep into the earth. "I'm gardening, Travis," she said over her shoulder. "Go away."

"Aw, is that how you talk to someone who took the time to steal you a water bottle?"

Katie glanced at him over her shoulder and narrowed her eyes. "Stole?"

"Borrowed," he said quickly, and she sighed again before turning away. "Anyway," he said after a minute, "I have a proposition for you."

"Mmm?" Katie said absently.

"Well, you know it's July and all…"

"Mm-hmm."

"And the fourth's coming up…"

"Yeah."

"And since you're not listening really right now and won't punch me for asking…"

"Yup."

"…Will you go to the fireworks with me?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever…"

Travis grinned wide, pumping his arm up in the air behind her, because she couldn't see and didn't care. But she'd said yes either way. "Great! Then I'll see you on the fourth!" And he turned and started to run off.

Then Katie turned and said, "Wait, what?"

Travis looked over his shoulder at her, his lopsided grin still plastered on his face. "See ya at the fireworks, Katie-Cat!" Then he was out of the fields and running for the cabins.

Katie sat there in the garden, open-mouthed and bright red, realizing what she'd just agreed to. For a moment, she felt like a fish out of water, opening and closing her mouth, feeling like she couldn't breathe. But then it faded into a feeling of happiness and excitement.

She was going to the fireworks with Travis Stoll.

_Katie _was, and not some random Aphrodite girl like last year.

Why it made her happy, she had yet to figure out. But for the rest of the day, she was grinning like an idiot, feeling almost like she could fly.

She didn't know Travis was doing exactly the same thing, too.


	10. Chapter 10: Hot

**A day early because I'm afraid I'll forget tomorrow what with it being a holiday and all...but here! :D**

* * *

Katie had never really cared about what she wore as long as she didn't look hideous. A pair of jeans and a t-shirt were fine with her, and none of that makeup and skirts and glitter really mattered, so why bother? But as the fourth came closer, she began to realize that she could _not _go to the fireworks with Travis in a pair of ratty jeans and her Camp Half-Blood t-shirt.

That's where the problem came in.

Katie didn't really have anything besides that to wear.

No skirts. No tank tops. No makeup. No high heels.

Nothing.

So in her moment of desperation, Katie turned to the one person she never thought she'd ever want to talk to again.

Becky Malone.

"You want me to help you with _what_?" demanded the pretty, raven-haired girl.

Katie sighed, nearly on the verge of begging on her knees. "Please, Becky…I know you don't really like me and all—"

"Don't _like _you?" Becky snorted. "You stole my boyfriend! And now you want me to help you look gorgeous for him? No way."

Katie scrunched up her nose. "I-I didn't steal Travis," she protested. "You guys broke up for your own reasons…"

Becky rolled her eyes. "Whatever floats your boat. But I am _not _helping _you_." And she promptly slammed the door in her face.

Katie could feel her face flushing with anger, her eyes burning. She yelled, "Fine! I didn't want your help anyway!" She turned on her heel and started down the steps from the Aphrodite cabin, plopping down on the bottom one and putting her head in her hands. It looked like she was going in muddy jeans…gods, she just wanted to be pretty for him. Was that too much to ask for?

"I can help."

Katie jerked her head up and found herself looking directly at the Aphrodite cabin leader, Silena Beauregard. The girl was smiling at her, looking genuine. Not like she was going to make her look like a clown because Becky was her sister.

"Really?" Katie asked, wiping away the dampness on her eyes.

Silena nodded. "Sure!" she said brightly. "Anything to help a girl get her guy!"

Katie blushed. "H-He's not my guy," she stammered, and Silena just giggled.

"Come on!" she said, grabbing Katie's hand and pulling her back up the steps. "Let's get to work!"

* * *

_Knock-knock-knock._

Travis looked up from where he sat plotting his next theft on his bunk. No one else was in the cabin by now. But he'd had yet to work up the courage to go and get Katie from the Demeter cabin. Every time he thought about it, he wondered if he was an idiot for asking her in the first place, considering it looked like he couldn't even get himself to get off his bed.

_Knock-knock-knock._

He sighed, betting it was an angry Demeter brother about to demand why he was standing his sister up…

"Travis, open the dang door."

His heart skipped a beat at her voice. He jumped up and scrambled to the door, quickly turning the handle and opening it to…

"Oh my gods," he breathed.

Katie stood there, her hair tangle-free and straightened so he could see it ended just at the center of her back. Makeup adorned her face, her lips cherry red and the black mascara making her eyes pop. She wore a light green sleeveless top with a black miniskirt, black high heels on her feet. She gave him an exasperated look, saying, "Travis! The fireworks are about to start! When were you planning on coming to get me?"

"H-Hot…" The word escaped his mouth without him really thinking about it. Instantly they both blushed crimson.

"W-What?" Katie asked, blinking a few times in shock.

"I, uh, I…said it was hot outside!" Travis blurted out. "I-I was coming to get you…I was getting a cooler shirt…"

"Oh." The red on Katie's cheeks faded down to normal. Or sort of normal, considering the blush she had on. She smiled at him and said, "Well, come on! We gotta hurry up or we'll get those crappy seats way far in the back!"

"Yeah," Travis agreed, grinning at her. He knew his face was still red from his slip-up, but, as Katie dragged him towards the fireworks, he figured it was worth it to see her blush like that.


	11. Chapter 11: Worst Scare

**I think there's only a few more chapters after this...yeah this was the first big push for the couple. Hope ya like it!**

* * *

The next year after the fireworks Katie had the biggest scare of her life. Worse than the demonic mailman. Worse than seeing Argus and Chiron for the first time. Worse than her garden "dying".

The Titan war.

Somehow, as campers, centaurs, and hunters united to fight, Katie found herself wielding a blade and conjuring up deadly cacti and venus flytraps, which didn't sound so dangerous (well, the sword did) until you were being eaten like a fly or falling into the cacti's needles. She thought she was holding out pretty good, slicing through the monsters with a surprising amount of gracefulness. For a fleeting moment, she thought they were going to do it.

The gods were going to win the war.

But then that moment ended.

* * *

"Katie! You were amazing out there!"

One battle out of many to come had ended, and Katie felt exhausted, slumped onto a couch. They'd lost so many…she wasn't sure who, yet, but she wanted to sleep first. She'd cry for the lost when she woke up. But one of her sisters (Abby? Taylor? She was too exhausted to really tell) came running towards her, smiling despite the blood and monster dust smeared on her face. She wrapped Katie in a tight hug, one that Katie feebly returned, before pulling back and exclaiming, "Gods, I didn't know you were so good with a sword!"

"I didn't, either," Katie admitted, fighting back a yawn. "I'm so tired," she said after a minute, and the sister nodded. But instead of walking away and letting her sleep, she lost her cheerful smile and leaned down close to Katie, her eyes completely serious. It made the sleepiness fade a bit, worry invading that little opening. "What's wrong?" she asked. "I mean, besides the obvious war going on…"

"Katie," the sister said, so seriously that Katie quit talking and just stared at her sibling in nervous confusion. The sister took a deep breath, then said softly, "Connor told me to tell you…Travis was injured in battle. They…they say he's fading fast…"

Katie felt that in that one second it took to say those words the fragile bit left of her life began to crack, threatening to shatter. "F-Fading fast?" she repeated as a question, her eyes unnaturally wide. "You mean…you mean he's…?"

The sister nodded solemnly. "Oh, gods, Katie…I'm so sorry."

But Katie was already up and running for the makeshift hospital, scanning all the demigods who lay around, being treated by Apollo kids. But she didn't see him. _Oh gods, where is he? Where is he? Where…?_

There. In the far back, lying on a table, a spear wound visible in his stomach even from where she stood a few tables away. He was continuously gritting his teeth against what must have been agonizing pain, clenching and unclenching his fist, while an Apollo kid worked away to what seemed to no avail. Connor stood off to one side, watching and trying not to let anyone see him crying. Katie remembered clearly how Connor still believed Travis was all he had left, no one else to turn to. And yet there he lay, dying…

Tears blurred her own eyes as she ran forward, past the inconsolable Connor, not caring how the Apollo kid shouted for her to get out of the way. There was nothing he could do now, anyway. She had to see him, had to talk to him…

Her hand gripped his tightly, the one that was wrapped around his wound. Words, useless words, poured from her mouth. "Travis! Oh, gods, Travis, how in Hades did you let this happen? You stupid idiot! Everything'll be okay!"

"K…Kates?" His voice was trembling and strained. His hand weakly held hers back. "Hey…who you calling…a stupid idiot?" he mumbled.

Tears streaked down her cheeks. "Everything's gonna be fine," she repeated, mostly trying to reassure herself.

Travis's mouth twitched into what Katie thought was a smile, but then his face twisted in horrible pain, and a scream escaped his mouth. Katie felt more tears falling. When the scream faded, he was left gasping, "Oh…you poor…delusional…Katie-Cat!"

"W-What?"

That smile flickered on his lips again, strange considering the horrible pain she saw in his eyes. "We both know…," he whispered, "that I'm not…gonna make it through…this one."

Katie's hand tightened over his, her bottom lip trembling. "O-Of course you are!" she said in a shaky voice. "You're Travis Stoll, prankster extraordinaire, the funny kid of Hermes who can live through anything…" Then she gave up lying. "I don't want to lose you," she whispered, falling to her knees beside the table so that her face was right beside his. "I-I can't lose you!"

That smile was still there. He coughed suddenly, ground his teeth against more pain and managed to hold back another scream. But when that all faded, he was smiling still. "Gods, Katie Gardener…," he said suddenly, so softly that she was sure only she could hear him now. "You are…so beautiful…"

His face went all blurry as even more tears spilled down her cheeks. "Stay with me, Travis!" she begged.

"Take care of…Connor…for me," he said. "Okay?"

"Y-You're not dyi—"

"Okay?"

"Okay," she managed.

Travis took in a deep breath. "Good," he said as he exhaled, his eyes flickering close.

Katie waited a moment for him to speak again, but he didn't. Waited for him to breath again, but he didn't. When she realized he wasn't going to speak again, make her laugh again, annoy her, pick on her, make her smile…she snapped.

_"No!" _she screamed. She jumped to her feet, her hands shooting out and grabbing him by the shoulders, shaking him. "Wake up! Wake up!" she yelled, a sickening feeling entering her stomach as his head lolled limply from side-to-side. Hands grabbed her shoulders, pulling her away from him, or trying to. At the last second, she jerked out of their grasps, leaping onto Travis's body and wrapping her arms around him, hugging his body close. "No," she sobbed into his cold shoulder. "No…"

"Katie…" a voice said behind her, but she ignored them. But they continued. "H-His heart gave out…there's nothing we can do now…"

Katie did the one thing she could think of. She pulled back and swiftly pressed her lips to his. It short, quick, probably sloppy and gross, but Katie kissed Travis Stoll, dead or not. When she pulled back, the hands, probably the Apollo kid, got a good hold on her and hauled her back. She screamed, sobbed like a child, much like Connor standing in the comfort of other Hermes kids.

Then, suddenly, everyone went quiet. Everyone's eyes locked on Travis.

Slowly, almost dream-like, the son of Hermes's eyes opened. He looked up at the people standing, tear-stained and shocked, and flashed a weaker version of his usual boyish grin. "W-What'd I miss?" he croaked.

The Apollo kid looked over at Katie slowly in shock. "You…You shocked his heart back into beating," the kid breathed, eyes wide.

And with that, Katie collapsed to her knees beside the table, sobbing though she smiled, shouting over and over, "Travis, you idiot, you scared the crap out of me! I'm so going to beat the heck out of you when this is all over!"

_But thank you for coming back to me._


	12. Chapter 12: Memories

**This is the last chapter! Gods, this was fun to write! I hope you all liked to read it as much as I liked to write it! :D**

**Warning! Katie MAY be a ooc, I'm not sure...  
**

* * *

The war was over.

The war between the gods and titans….and the war between her and Travis. The gods won the first. Who won the second? Katie wasn't quite sure. She wondered that as she sat on the edge of the dock, kicking her feet back and forth, absently staring down at the water beneath her.

In a way, she guessed they both won. Because, after everything, she realized that they'd always had the same goal disguised between the teasing and irritation. They'd always wanted—

"There you are!"

Katie looked over her shoulder, smiling when she saw who was running down the dock towards her. "Hey."

Travis stopped a little ways behind her, his usual lopsided grin on his face. "I've been looking everywhere for you, Kates!" he exclaimed. "You, my friend, are a very hard girl to find."

Katie rolled her eyes at him. "Let me guess. You only checked the strawberry fields and then you came here."

"…No."

"Sure." Katie watched him grin at her for a minute, then turned back to the water.

"What's wrong?" Travis asked, worry suddenly evident in his voice.

"Nothing," Katie said. "Just thinking."

"Oh." A short silence. "What about?"

"Nothing."

"Well, that's really hard to do," Travis said, coming up beside her and sitting down, dangling his feet over the edge like she was doing. "I've tried."

"Really?" Katie asked. "I'd imagined you did that all the time."

Travis shot her a look. "Very funny."

"I thought so." Another silence. Katie stared out at the water, debating in her head whether or not to say what she was thinking. The gods knew she wanted to. But it wasn't really in her personality to say stuff like it…

"Remember when I stuck your gardening tools out on . . . _that _buoy out there?" Travis asked suddenly, pointing towards a little white dot bobbing about in the water.

Katie nodded. "Yeah," she said. "I accidentally flipped the canoe and _you _lost the paddles!"

Travis held up his hands. "Hey, I was just trying to not drown," he said defensively.

"So then we had to swim all the way back," Katie continued as if he hadn't spoken. "And I _so _won that race, you know."

"Nuh-uh! I did!"

"Keep telling yourself that."

"I will, thank you very much," Travis said.

Katie laughed. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Travis's smile get a little bit wider. _Should I say it…?_

"Remember when I put the chocolate bunnies on top of the Demeter cabin?"

Katie sighed. "Sadly, yes."

"Aw, come on! You know it was awesome!"

"Not when you're trying to get melted chocolate of the roof!" countered Katie. "Did you have to pick a _sunny _day to do that?"

"Kates, it is always sunny here."

"Shut up."

This time, Travis laughed, which just caused Katie to scowl at her hands in her lap. "You really annoy me," she told him.

"That's why you love me!" Then it seemed to strike him what he'd said and, for the first time Katie could remember, she saw Travis Stoll blush. And she thought it was cute.

_Gods, I wanna tell him…_

"Hey, Kit-Kat?"

"Hmm?"

"Wanna make another memory?"

Katie felt her entire face go red. "W-W-What?"

"Wanna make another memory?" Travis repeated, grinning at her.

The word "Sure" was out of her mouth before she could think.

The next few seconds were a blur for her, but when she saw things clearly again, she realized she was thrashing about in the water, trying to keep her head above the surface while Travis rolled around laughing on the dock. "Travis Stoll!" she screamed furiously. "I'm so going to kill you!"

Travis grinned down at her. "If I had a nickel for every time you said that…"

On impulse, Katie reached up and snagged his arm. With a yelp, Travis tumbled down into the water next to her. He came up sputtering, Katie laughing hysterically at his stunned expression. "Karma!" she giggled.

"Kates…!" he whined.

Katie just kept laughing, Travis starting to grin again despite them both being soaked. Then they just stopped, staring at each other floating in the lake.

Finally, Katie said it. "Hey, Travis?"

"Yeah?"

"…I think I might actually like you."

Travis froze and nearly sank with the shock. But then he grinned wider than she'd ever seen. "I think I like you, too, Kit-Kat," Travis said. Then, without any hesitation, he swam forward, wrapping his arms around her waist and pressing his lips to hers.

It was the most magical memory the two shared.


End file.
